Reviews by kojevergas:

Bottle into Westvleteren goblet at In Da Vrede Cafe, Westvleteren, Belgium. I had me fair share of these while I was there; I was waiting to pick up me reservation of 48 Westvleteren blonde, which I managed to do on foot with a photocopy of a USA car registration. At least it saves you the cost of the crate deposit.

A: Two fingers of marvelous cream and thickness. Dark amber-caramel colour, almost black. Very appealing.

T: Dark fruit and some nuts. The dark fruit is a bit like the Westy 12, but lessened to accomodate the nuts. A sour fruit finish with notes from the nose. Very complex. Plum and cherry come through. I love the fruit undertones. Perfectly balanced. Well built for the style.

Mf: Silky smooth and wonderful. Very delicate and soft. Exquisite cream. Again, very similar to the Westy 12. I don't know how they make the mouthfeel of such a complex and high ABV beer so fragile and delicate; it's just beyond me. It's truly masterful brewing. Perfect.

Dr: I'll pound it all night like it's Megan Fox. Not as good as the 12, but still an amazing beer. I think too often this beer gets compared with the 12 unfavorably, which is so difficult to avoid. Taken out of the shadow of the 12, it's a magnificent beer in its own right. This beer can almost have a tendency to feel like its a step on the staircase towards the 12, but it ought to be considered outside this context, as in terms of the Dubbel style, it's hard to do better. An amazing beer all things considered. Very affordable when purchased at the abbey and not from the douchenozzle ebayers. Obviously its availability is a constraining factor.

More User Reviews:

The pleasure to enjoy this magical beer at the Cambrinus Restaurant in Brugge in complement to a fine late lunch is as welcome in my memory bank as profound as any I have had in all my beer drinking days.

As the beer pours into the challice, the carbonation errupts and threatens to overtak the rim. But alas, it settles into a creamy and rocky set of tightly and loosely knit foam with tremendous staying power and intricate lace to boot. The beer underneath is a dark garnet with lavender highlights carrying a modest yeasty haze. The beer just exudes prowessness.

Delicate and succulent aromas provide a candied fruit scent of powdered sugar, ripe grape, light sherry wines, cahsews, honey, mild chocolate and toast. A mild spicy note that seems somewhat of wine, wood, dried orange peel, and peppercorn come to life just as the first sip is taken.

The taste envelops the mouth, coating it with the taste of powdered sugar, dry malt, red wine, candied grapes, nuts, berries, and the background note of dried pitted fruits like dates and figs. Very well balanced with dry malt tannin, spicy peppercorn, and slight citrus- this beer captures wave after wave of flavor combination with exquisit balance and finesse.

Soft and expansive textures seem to explode in the mouth giving an airy robustness that's somewhat firm and whimsical at the same time. But the beer's ultimate dry and powdery warmth causes it to disolve on the tongue just like cotton candy, and when the beer finishes there's nothing there to swallow- only an impression of dry fruit and spice that lingers softly in aftertaste but easy on the palate and stomach.

It's time once again to add a little beer to this mug of mine. Since the first addition to the glass was Westvleteren 12, I've decided to keep it in the family and go with Westvleteren 8, the best dubbel on the planet according to those whom I respect and admire.

Pecan shell brown that takes on more of an auburn hue with orange highlights when backlit. The voluminous toast brown head appears frothysoft, but is deceptively firm with a supernatural persistence. This beer is simply beautiful in the glass. Lovely aroma of heavily toasted caramel, dried fruit (apples, figs) steeped in brandy, and spice (cinnamon, allspice). The nose is complex to be sure, although it could be a mite stronger.

Wonderful flavor; delicious. My first impression is that, although there are many flavors to be had in this bottle, the beer is unquestionably a seamless, individual entity. As I drink, I actually have a mental image of a sphere that has multiple and varied components, but is first and foremost a perfectly smooth whole. My first bottle of exceptional wine was an eye opening experience because it introduced me to the concept of what I like to call 'volume'. This beer has an superabundance of volume.

When a beer is this well-crafted, this flavorful, this complex and this nuanced, when it has a body that is at once full and silky smooth, each mouthful seems to completely fill the mouth, to have such a depth and breadth of flavor and body that it expands into three dimensions and push the boundaries of sensation. That, my friends, is the best way that I can devise to describe the loveliness that is Westvleteren 8.

The flavor profile is amazingly similar to the nose, but much more satisfying ('tis the taste, the actual imbibing that I crave). Sweet, dark caramel-toffee, brandy-soaked cherries, leather, good bourbon... combined with a grace and a lightness of touch that will make your very soul weep with pleasure.

Is Westvleteren 8 better than Westvleteren 12? My vote is an unqualified 'yes'. I could drink this every day for the rest of my life and not tire of its myriad charms. This is as soul satisfying and as life affirming as beer gets.

Presentation: .33l brown bottle. Direct from the source, so no label. Just a blue cap and the number 8. Served in a traditional Westvleteren silver rimmed chalice glass.

Appearance: Pours a mean chunky off-white head of stiff foam. Settles to a patchy lace with sticking and staying power. Colour is a very deep, dark ruby. Poured leaving most of the yeast in the bottle.

Taste: Extremely smooth on the palate with a wonderful creamy mouthfeel with a fine and gentle carbonation. Luscious malt flavours of chocolate, coffee, licorice/anise, toffee, prune and honey unfold onto the palate with a slightly slick buttery-like (diacetyl). Notes of brandy pull-thru for even more depth of character. A racy sharpness hits with a unique yeast flavour, very mild tea-like bitterness and a spicy alcohol presence. Perfect balance. Dry finish, a little slick on the palate, a bit oily, with coffee and earth flavour residuals and alcohol vapors.

Notes: I'd go as far as saying that this is without a doubt one of the best beers on the planet. Truly a masterpiece.

Appearance: Pours a dark amber color with a pancake batter head that drapes sheets of lace

Smell: Very different aromatics from this one - phenolic scent of caramelized apple, rum-soaked raisins, french toast with vanilla sugar, honey and almonds

Taste: Opens with a rum-soaked raisin and caramel flavor with budding vanilla flavors by mid-palate; Amaretto, as well; after the swallow, the caramel, creme brulee takes over and additional alcohol appears on the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation; very smooth

Drinkability: While very similar to its boozy cousin, this one is less sweet and less alcoholic and, in my opinion, much more drinkable

Finally a chance to get my hands on a Westy and well not as awed as many others by this beer.Pours a deep brown almost black color with a fizzy head that didnt stick around to long,aroma of spiced apples and quite yeasty.Very raisiny and somewhat spicey up front, with a light medicinal note as it warms along with some alcohol tones.I highly anticipated this beer and was left a little dissapointed.

Smell: I fund the nose to have a suprising tartness to it and light woody notes. There are hints of spice and unsweetened chocolate here as well.

Taste: Now this is what i was waiting for! A lovely creamy, rich body with wonderful sweetness and complexity. Hints of cocolate, black licorice and caramel reign supreme. Underlying spice gives the beer an extra kick.

Mouthfeel: Creamy and rich. A full and satisfying beer.

Drinkability: How about all the time?! Fantastic beer with great complexity and great dinkability. This is what brewing is all about.

Appearance  Gorgeous, deep brown color with a gigantic whitish tan head that laced every square exposed inch of the inside glass.

Smell  Strong aroma of molasses and fine brown sugar. Some malt as well, and a few other things that I couldn't pinpoint. The smell says its serious.

Taste  This is a hearty brew. The initial taste is almost like a good single malt scotch. It is so sweet, but a sophisticated sweet. I dont know what it is, almost like a good rye or barley flavor. The malt is there, too, along with a presence of alcohol and even a bitter, slightly burnt, dark flavor. This beer has it all, and it's all well executed.

The finish just keeps going. Its almost like syrup  it lingers in your mouth forever. I cant say enough about the flavor of this beer. Im a big fan of the (properly done) darker European ales (weitzens, abbeys, etc) and this one just blows me away.

Mouthfeel  I thought the beer was undercarbonated ever so slightly (for my taste), but typical of the style. The smoothness though was beyond reproach.

Drinkability  This is its strong suit. The 5.0 that Im giving it here under represents my enjoyment in drinking this bottle.

Comments  I had never heard of this beer until I went into a store and, for no real reason, tossed it in my cart. When I logged on I realized that I may have grabbed a diamond in the sand, and I was right.

I think that I might just like this one a touch more than the 12. The 8 has lighter aromas and flavors, a softer body and a lighter palate. The reduced alcohol gives the beer a less vinous character, which allows more delicate components of the nose and tongue to shine through. This is certainly more subtle but I dont think its lacking anything significant on the 12. Its just a different beer. One item that I must note is the body. IN addition to being generally softer, the 8 seems to be considerably more bubbly. The head is slightly more aggressive on the lips and tongue and the more assertive carbonation seems to do a better job of cleansing the palate between sips. Each next sip, is therefore closer resembling the original, full flavored, mind blowing sip. I like this about the beer. I also like that it looks, tastes, and smells just uncannily good and also that its damn near impossible to find. What a treat it is and well worth every penny, or couple thousand pennies that one must drop to get a bottle.

A: Dark brown with a medium sized off-white/pale brown head that dissipates slowly and leaves plenty of lacings.

S: Light fruity aromas and plenty of malts - very thick and robust. Notes of fudge and toffee mixed with earthy herbal aromas. Some spicy phenols and alcohol. Rather complex and well balanced, but it's not as impressive or as powerful as I had expected.

T: A similar balance between fruity aromas and malts as in the smell: cherries, slightly tart red currants rests upon a decent malty backbone. Fudge and caramel delivers much of the sweetness. Dark bread, a gentle note of wood and just a hint of blanket (which I find a bit odd). The finish is slightly phenolic and somewhat bitter with notes of sweet alcohol, herbs and minerals.

M: Full bodied, smooth texture. The finish is somewhat dry. A very pleasant mouthfeel.

D: A good beer, very good actually. Complex, well balanced and tasty. But one of the best beers in the world? Perhaps not, in my humble opinion.

Carries the flavor of the famous Westvleteren 12, but without so much of the depth or complexity. Still an amazing beer, more drinkable in the sense that if you have 3 your head doesn't start swimming, but you cant shake the feeling that the 12 is that much better and what you really want. Similar to Dogfish 90/120 in that sense, the 90 is good in its own right but still just pales in comparison to its big brother.

Anyhow, the beer itself looks and smells excellent, extremely dark with a tan head. Definite mix of darker fruits and malts, goes down extremely easy especially for a beer with 8% alcohol. Nicely carbonated, and like its big brother best enjoyed at the cafe opposite the monastery for the full experience.

Appearance - Pours a dark reddish color, with about half an inch of head that sticks to the sides of the glass, giving this beer "legs"

Smell - Sweet apples and grapes, bready and yeasty smell.

Taste/Mouthfeel - Very smooth and creamy, with just the right amount of carbonation. Lots of fruitiness here, with plum and grape flavors taking the forefront. Dry aftertaste with a mild alcohol warming sensation.

Drinkability - Hands down one of the most drinkable beers I've ever had. I finished off this bottle in no time. Each sip leaves you yearning for another. Damn near perfect brew.

Four-year-old bottle--a gift from a friend. Poured into a silver-rimmed Westvleteren chalice, a nearly opaque, dark, rusty brown, with shimmering ruby hues, a tightly-laced creamy beige head atop, and a settled, healthy, ringed lace. Toffee in the nose, along with a suggestion of dates. On the palate, very dry up front, and incredibly complex beneath. Powdery malts, dextriny notes of carob, honey, and a spike of sherry. Similar malted milky sweetness pro&#64257;le found in the Blonde, but with more depth. Soft prune, date sugar, hint of anise, slightly roasty around the edges, carob and a brush of toffee. Light phenols, herbal. Slightly fumy alcohol on the breath. Dry, powdery &#64257;nish.

Westvleteren 8 is &#64257;ne aged, but it's become a bit too dry and muted for our liking. Delicious fresh, and arguably better than Westvleteren 12 in drinkability.